By Sam Egburonu, Editor

In it’s reaction to the leaked memo addressed to the Lagos State Ministry of Health, confirming that the State Government approved N61,285,000 for the mass burial of 103 persons identified as 2020 EndSARS victims, Amnesty International has called on the state government to put the planned mass burial on hold until conclusion of a satisfactory Corona Inquest to at least determine the true identity of the victims amongst other necessary details.

Nigerians were enraged on Sunday morning when social media first broke the news of the leaked memo, dated July 19, 2023, which captured steps for the processing of funds after approval by the state governor.

NewsOrient Network reported earlier, that in her response to the initial reports on the planned mass burial, the Lagos State Government, through the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr Olusegun Ogboye, had stated that the 103 bodies of the #EndSARS victims the state government plans to bury in mass were not picked from Lekki Tollgate after the controversial shootings in the area but that they were picked in the aftermath of the different protests and violence that trailed the #EndSARs incident.

Responding, the Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, in a statement on Monday, said, “The Nigerian authorities must urgently halt their plans to carry out a secret mass burial of #EndSARS victims and instead carry out a thorough and independent investigation into the killings and ensure that those suspected to be responsible are brought to justice in fair trials.”

It warned that the authorities must also carry out transparent coroner inquests and autopsies on the 103 #EndSARS victims and publish their identities and the circumstances of their deaths.

It is appalling that the Lagos state government has not even mentioned that it has held the bodies of 103 #EndSARS victims in its custody since October 2020,” Sanusi said.

“All those detained because of their role in the #EndSARS protests must be immediately released. The Nigerian authorities must also ensure that victims and their families are provided with access to justice and effective remedies, including adequate compensation.”

Amnesty International noted that it had been monitoring developments across Nigeria since the #EndSARS protests began on October 8, 2020.

“In October 2020, an on-the-ground investigation by Amnesty International confirmed that Nigerian security forces opened fire on thousands of peaceful protesters, who were peacefully calling for good governance and an end to police brutality, killing at least 12 protesters at Lekki toll gate and in Alausa,” director Sanusi said.

“Amnesty International was able to establish that pro-government supporters instigated violence at many of the demonstrations, providing cover for the police to use lethal force against peaceful protesters.

“On 16 November 2020, a Judicial Panel of Inquiry set up to investigate the Lekki toll gate killings submitted its report, which indicted the military and the police for killing unarmed protesters, who were sitting on the floor and waving Nigerian flags and singing.”

Photo Credit: The Guardian Newspaper Nigeria